FIFA, coaches and players test pitch for USA vs. Germany

RECIFE, Brazil — More than an hour before the game, U.S coaches and players inspected the field at Arena Pernambuco in the aftermath of the torrential rains that have snarled traffic and caused flooding throughout the city before the 12 p.m. ET kickoff against Germany.

With the rain slowing, kickoff isn’t expected to be delayed. However, the conditions will be an issue. It could increase the chances of a sloggy tie, which would send both teams through.

The rain is expected to continue the rest of the day, with the forecast calling for a 100 % chance of rain at kickoff. It drops to 80 percent by 3 p.m., just as the game will be ending.

A strong American crowd is expected, but reports of bus issues and delays have left some fans and scrambling for a way to get to the game.

U.S. Soccer announced that there will be no warmups on the field prior to the game. They will be taking place behind the nets.

Multiple streets are flooded in Recife after a day of heavy rains ahead of the U.S.-Germany match. According to the National Natural Disasters Monitoring and Alerts Center, the city received 2.36 inches of rain in the past 24 hours, which corresponds to at least a fourth of the amount expected in the entire month of June.

The weather prediction today is of cloudy skies and scattered storms in the city.

Still, the game will go on as planned, and the U.S. team is already in the stadium. The U.S. Men’s team tweeted a photo of their driver braving the flooded streets to get to the stadium, and Fifa has already announced that the game will not be delayed or cancelled.

The U.S. men’s team has faced a series of serious weather issues in its games across the north and northeast of Brazil. Before the Americans’ World Cup opener in Natal, the city’s civil defense forces evacuated locals from their homes and faced mudslides in the days before the U.S.-Ghana game.

In the Amazonian city of Manaus, players were quickly drenched in sweat in the muggy heat, and officials called a water break during the U.S.-Portugal game.